Connections
by toxinspired
Summary: A single encounter in Midoriya Izuku's childhood sends his fate careening into a different path. It was one right turn instead of left. Turning right meant that Izuku would never grow up into being the Number One Pro Hero, the Symbol of Peace. Instead, he became the Symbol of Hope and the most impressive vigilante Japan had ever seen.
1. Chapter 1

Izuku's lungs burned, but he kept on running. He wasn't sure if the pounding he heard was the sound of the boys chasing him or the sound of his own heart beating loudly in his ears. Maybe both. He rounded yet another corner, looking behind him and seeing none of his pursuers. He willed himself to slow down and counted the slabs of pavement beneath his sneakers.

Reaction time slowed as the adrenaline high was wearing down, Izuku didn't hear the other boy until their heads collided painfully. Izuku smacked down onto the sidewalk, gravel digging into his palms. He looked up to complain but the words caught in his throat when he saw the panic on the others face. A strange thing to notice first when the other boy's appearance was a split of colors; from his hair to his eyes to his skin, one side stood vastly stark against the other.

The strange boy hadn't really taken note of Izuku yet, his head whipped around, eyes wide. Izuku stood up slowly, waiting to speak until the other boy looked him in the eyes, "Sorry for bumping into-"

"I need to go." The boy rushed out, cutting Izuku off, looking around again.

"Need somewhere to hide?" The kid's head swiveled so quickly, Izuku felt his own neck hurt, "I know a good place."

The other didn't respond, looking back over his shoulder every few seconds.

"Well, I'll lead the way there." Izuku said, starting to walk, "You don't have to follow me if you don't want to."

Izuku walked past the boy and continued on to his hideout. He didn't hear footsteps behind him, so he figured the boy had ran off. Thus, he nearly startled out of his skin when he got to the steps of the vacant house and heard a creak behind him.

The boy stopped when Izuku turned around, face spelling confusion. Izuku laughed nervously and walked the rest of the way up, "Gee, sorry. You're just so quiet, I didn't realize you were there."

The boy hummed in what Izuku assumed was agreement as the two walked around the porch to a unremarkable window. Pulling off his backpack, Izuku procured a palate scraper. He climbed into the window after prying it open, motioning for the strange boy to do the same.

The house hadn't been vacant for long, but the popularity of the neighborhood went down without the matching drop in price. Even the realtor hadn't visited the house in months, much less with any prospective buyers. The boys had entered into what was probably a dining room. Izuku moved into the kitchen, taking a seat on the floor.

The spot in question was hidden behind an island, not visible from the outside. An old futon and some blankets were strewn about, as well as a collection of toys and notebooks. Izuku sat with his back against the island and turned as the other boy sat down next to him.

"Midoriya Izuku." He said, sticking out his hand.

The other boy stared for a moment, before lightly grasping Izuku's hand for a single shake before pulling back. He turned away and Izuku just barely caught what he said, "I'm Todoroki Shouto."

Izuku smiled minutely, "I come here to get away. I have a…" Izuku hesitated, not knowing whether it was safe to say or not, "Condition that the kids at school like to tease me about. Any reason you're getting away, Todo-"

Izuku stopped when Todoroki put a hand on his arm, "Please, call me Shouto."

"Okay then. Any reason you're getting away, Shouto?"

Shouto pulled his hand back into his lap, picking at his sleeves. Izuku could see him worrying at his lip. The silence dragged on for a few more moments and Izuku opened his mouth to speak again, "You don't have to tell me. It's okay, I get it."

Shouto nodded. Izuku noticed he kept eyeing the window they came in.

"It's almost impossible to see us from the outside," He said, keeping his tone gentle, "You're safe in here."

The other boy kept silent. Izuku cast about for what to talk about, something neutral. His eyes landed on one of his notebooks. He reached for it slowly, not wanting to startle Shouto with sudden movements.

Holding it up, he turned, "Do you like heroes, Shouto?"

For a moment, Izuku was worried he would keep up the silent act. But he swallowed visibly and nodded again, "I think I have to?"

Frowning Izuku turned fully, facing his body entirely towards Shouto, "You don't have to do anything. It's your life to live."

He barely caught the muttered, "Not really."

"It's your life to live." He said again, more insistently, "You are your own person, not the person whatever you're running from wants you to be."

Shouto looked up for a moment, "I don't know how."

"First, find something you like." Izuku met Shouto's gaze, "Something that makes you happy. It can be the smallest of things, but it's yours. The other kids reduce me to my… condition. But I won't let them define me."

"You're really strong. Unlike me…" Izuku wanted to protest, but Shouto kept on talking, "I'm not strong. Or at least, not strong enough. Or good enough."

He was almost overcome with the sudden desire to punch whoever was making Shouto feel this way, but he swallowed it down, "There is no such thing as good enough. Everyone has something they're good at, even if it's something like… I don't know, giving good directions or being able to make someone laugh or getting cats to trust them."

Shouto make a noise that Izuku hoped was a noise of amusement at the last part of his comment, "I'm sure that's a very valuable skill."

He cracked a smile, "Hey, don't knock it till you see it in action. Imagine like, having an army of cats. No one would be able to touch you! They'd take one look at the cats and be overcome with the urge to pet them. Then, boom! You grab them. Another villain downed with the power of cuteness."

Shouto actually let out a laugh at that and Izuku was very proud of himself. But the amused quirk of his mouth disappeared as quick as it came, "Even if I do have a skill like that, what's the use if I can't beat him?

"I'm… I'm supposed to be the golden child, the perfect combination of my parents quirks. The prodigal son, I guess." His voice caught and all Izuku wanted to do was steal him away, from all the bad.

Shouto rubbed the back of his neck and Izuku caught the sight of bruised skin around Shouto's wrist. Purple and brown and green and yellow encompassed his arm like a thick bracelet, the clear marks of fingers dotting near his pulse.

Shouto took a shaky breath and continued on, "My brother, my oldest brother, he didn't come home from school last week. Father knew as well as my siblings and I did that it was a choice. My brother wasn't kidnapped or attacked. Father trained him, trained all of us, better than that. The night before he left, I heard Father shouting at him. He was really angry, angrier than I have ever heard him. I don't know what my brother said to him, but Father got really quiet and said something. The only thing I heard after that was the front door slam.

"This morning, Father changed the locks. When… when we started afternoon training, he started saying all this really mean stuff. About my brothers and my sister and my mother. About how I was the only one worth keeping around. About how he hopes my brother, how he hopes his own son is dead in a ditch by now. I just ran after that."

Shoto fell silent again, fingers tangling in the fabric of his sleeve even tighter than before. Izuku drew his knees up to his chest, mind fumbling over what he should say, what he could say. After a moment, Shouto made a move to stand up. Desperately, Izuku grabbed the boy's sleeve, careful not to actually grab his arm. Shouto looked down at him, mismatched eyes meeting endless green.

"You deserve better." Izuku said, maintaining eye contact, "You, your brothers, your sister, your mother. You all deserve better."

Shouto blinked at him, staying silent.

"You shouldn't have to prove yourself or fight for respect. No, not even respect. You deserve kindness, deserve love."

Izuku could see Shouto swallow and he continued on, "You will make it out. You won't be stuck under him forever. I can promise you that.

"You will be okay. You can beat him." Tears gathered at the corners of Shouto's eyes and he nodded.

He turned away from Izuku, running his sleeves across his face. When their eyes met again, there was a quiet determination there. "I need to return," Shouto started, "But I will make it through this, maybe I'll sic an army of cats on him." His smile didn't reach his mismatched eyes, "Thank you."

Izuku watched as Shouto climbed back out the window. He watched as he walked down the block. He watched all the way until Shouto turned a corner, out of sight.

His mother noted his unusual silence as they ate that night. "Is everything okay, Izuku?"

Izuku looked down at his food, contemplating what he could say to his mother. He wasn't stupid. He recognized the Todoroki name as soon as Shouto said it. Izuku knew Endeavor had children, but he had never expected this. Endeavor was a hero, right? Not any old hero either, he was number two. Izuku was afraid to dig deeper, scared of what he might find. His mother looked at him, eyes colored with concern.

He cleared his throat and met her gaze, "What happens to the people the heroes can't save?"

* * *

After Izuku met Shouto, he threw himself into work. He jogged in the mornings before school, absorbed all the information about heroes he could from the newsfeed during school, and worked out after school. While his mother could not afford formal training, one of her coworkers offered to teach Izuku the basics of hand-to-hand. Every Wednesday and Saturday, he took the train to the coworkers house and she threw him into the grass of her backyard repeatedly.

Izuku was ravenous. He wanted to learn everything. He watched every instructional video about fighting online as well as took notes of what the heroes did. He picked up extra study material from the library and learned everything he could from them. His already stuffed backpack was now overflowing with notebooks for every purpose under the sun, from quirk observations to combat techniques to rescue notes. He enrolled in the first aid course his local clinic offered and used what little money he had to buy books on physcology.

However, at the end of the day, Izuku was still quirkless.

 _And a coward._ He thought to himself as he crossed the street to avoid Bakugou and his lackeys on his way to school. He was a third year in middle school now. His dream of becoming a hero was still the same, however there was a slight difference on his high school application. UA Support Department. He had never been a tinkerer as a child, but he did have a thorough understanding of quirks and the more he learned about the support field, the more ideas and improvements ran through his head as he watched hero fights.

As he stopped to watch Kamui Woods and Mount Lady apprehend a villian during rush hour, he still felt out of his depth. He had nonstop ideas and information running through his brain the whole day. He almost didn't notice when his homeroom teacher started talking about high school. Really, he didn't notice it until Bakugou starting popping off small explosions.

Izuku tuned in just in time for the homeroom teacher to say, "Midoriya is aiming for UA as well, correct?"

He had pages of information on Bakugou's fighting style as well as the mechanics of his quirk. He had hours of training under his belt; two years under his teacher meant he put her back into the grass on more frequent occasions now. He had his training burned into his muscles. Still, in the face of an angry Bakugou and scrutinizing classmates, all of that was for naught. Years of bullying overrode his muscle memory as he cowered and sputtered, he tried the shrink down in his seat to appear as non threatening as possible.

Bakugou would always give up eventually is what Izuku told himself as he got cornered in the classroom after school. What he told himself when Bakugou blew up one of his notebooks (relatively fresh, a waste of money but not a big loss of information). What he has been telling himself since he was diagnosed quirkless at age four.

Bakugou always got bored and quit bothering him. Izuku couldn't say the same of his current predicament. Sludge crawled over his clothes and skin and into his mouth. The villain was saying something.

"-hijacking your body. Calm down." The villain said, as sludge filled his ear.

Izuku tried to breathe and grasped wildly at the villain trying to overtake him.

"No point in trying that. I'm fluid, you see!" The villain cackled and then made a sound of interest, "Not only do I get to take over a unsuspicious quirkless kid, I get a girl too!"

Izuku bristled, digging in more frantically as he struggled for air. It had been years since he was called a girl, he had almost forgotten how much it stings. His vision blurred as he panicked, sludge writhing across his face. He almost didn't see the manhole cover shoot into the air. The next voice was not from the villain speaking directly into his ear, it sounded muffled to his clogged ears but he could still understand each word.

"Fear not, kid! I am here!"

The next few moments are a blur. There sludge filling all his cavities and then, with a wild burst of wind, there isn't. He blacks out momentarily and comes to with All Might, the number one hero, his idol since he was small, probably the strongest man on Earth, looming over Izuku. All Might's face is inches from his. Sputtering and backing away, he half listens to what All Might is saying.

Izuku's mind is racing. He just got saved by All Might, the best hero out there. Some dark part of his mind wonders if he's anything like Endeavor in private, but he shakes it away. He has to ask All Might what he's always wondered. The hero readies to leave and Izuku moves before he consciously realizes it. He grips to All Might's leg right as the hero leaps spectacularly off the ground.

They land on a rooftop, Izuku's eyes dried out from the wind. All Might has his back towards him, saying something about time. He takes a deep breath and asks.

"Even without a quirk… Can I still be a hero?"

All Might doesn't respond, so Izuku pushes on, briefly touching on his history of being bullied and his admiration for the hero. His eyes are focused on the ground. Biting his lip, he spits out the last bit of his monologue, "I want to be able save people, just like yo-"

He cuts himself off when he raises his head and sees the gaunt person in front of him, steam steadily rising into the air. When questioned, the person reveals himself to still be All Might, but the 'real him'. Izuku startles when All Might lifts his shirt to reveal the grotesque injury dominating his side. He can feel the horror start to overcome him as the hero details the injury. He knows the dangers of being a hero, or, at least, he thought he did. Risking his life. Of course Izuku knows what death is, has been faced with it in his own life as family and neighbors died, has even contemplated it himself. Never did he truly give much thought to giving it up for the sake of others. He knows that heroes do that, he follows the news. He just never included himself in that.

"Without power, can one become a hero?" All Might asks and Izuku knows his answer before he says it, "No, I should think not."

All Might lists off the other professions Izuku could pursue and still save people, but he knows all this already. He knows he could be a police officer or a detective or a doctor or a therapist. He knows. But his mind flashes back to the kid he met two years ago, the last son of Endeavor, Todoroki Shouto. All the listed careers could help him. But could they save every kid like him? Every kid silently suffering?

The fight this morning did not require two heroes. Yet still, both Kamui Woods and Mount Lady responded within minutes of the alert. Logically, crime goes up when there are more people about. But that also means more people to witness, to report, to deal with it. Heroes never seem to care about heroics when no one is watching.

All Might leaves, telling him to 'be realistic'. Izuku doesn't even have the time to think about that before an explosion sounds in the distance.

* * *

Izuku doesn't want to go. He doesn't want to see heroes in action. But after years of chasing heroes, his traitorous feet bring him to the scene anyway. _Being small has its advantages in crowds_ , he thinks as he shoulders his way to the front. More explosions sound off, quieter than the first.

The first thing he sees is the villain. He hadn't gotten a good look at him when he was attempting to kill him, but he figures this one must be the same. Which means All Might lost the villain somewhere between capturing it and the rooftop. Which means the bottles the villain were captured in were most likely knocked loose by Izuku.

The second thing he sees is a shock of blonde hair and wide red eyes. The popping of explosions had sounded familiar but Izuku had written it off. Anything could cause explosions like that, a whole host of quirks, right? But he would never forget those eyes, so often looking down at him. Bakugou wasn't crying, he had always been stronger than Izuku, but his eyes were wide. He looked scared.

The third thing he sees is the amount of heroes standing at the sidelines, talking about 'waiting for someone with a suitable quirk'. Professional heroes, mulling about and just watching a child suffer. _Typical_ is what the bitter part of Izuku thinks.

The fourth thing he sees is the scenery rushing by as he jolts forward. He runs, sprints, faster then he ever has. His mind goes over every single thing he knows about quirks and then some. There has to be a weakness, there must. He can't be entirely fluid.

Two eyes bug out at him as heroes yell and shout for him to stay back. Two eyes. His backpack is off and in his hands before he knows it. He doesn't have the time to open it and grab a projectile, so he just launches the entire thing.

It hits.

It's only for a moment, but the villain recoils. Izuku hears Bakugou take a deep breath while he gets closer. The villain says something but it goes unheard over the pounding in his ears. He tears and claws at the sludge, trying to do something, anything. The heroes shout but don't approach.

Just as he gets a hand around Bakugou's wrist, another encircles his own. A moment later, the villain disperses. And then it's over. At least it's over for the civilians standing by, watching in awe just as he has all his life.

The paramedics arrive and give him the clear. The heroes crowd him and tell him how he shouldn't have done that. Tell him he shouldn't have helped. Sitting on another stretcher, Bakugou receives praise for his strength and resilience. Izuku goes home with a warning.

Izuku knows what he did was reckless, probably stupid, and maybe even self-sacrificing. But, even as Bakugou yells at him, he knows what he did was right.

The streetlights begin to turn on one by one as he makes his way home. He expects to see All Might next on the news, receiving praise. He expects to come home to his worried mother. He doesn't expect for All Might to round the corner at full speed.

Burning hope rises in him as All Might praises him for his actions. It threatens to overflow when he tells him he can be a hero. It goes cold when he reveals the nature of his quirk.

Izuku swallows his fanboyish muttering and stares at All Might, whose arms are held out wide as if trying to convey the magnitude of his words. "So I can be a hero, if I take your quirk?"

"Yes, my boy!" All Might booms, "I believe you to be worthy."

He bites his lip, "So in order to become a hero, I need a quirk. A powerful quirk."

All Might falters, "Well, yes… It would be dangerous otherwise."

"So I'm worthy enough to bestow this powerful quirk upon me, but no one else is? No other quirkless kid who designs his hero costumes in secret, but they know it will never see the light of day? No other kid who has a weak quirk who push themself every day, but never power up? No other kid who has an 'unworthy' quirk who fight to be recognized, but get told day after day what their destiny is?"

All Might, currently powered down, sputters, "Ah, well, maybe I haven't met them yet… But you are here."

"Then go meet them. Talk to them and really listen. It's been decades since you were a kid; the world has changed." Izuku's mouth sets in a hard line, "Maybe try to change it."

All Might falls silent after that and Izuku adjusts his bag on his shoulder, "Don't worry, though. Not a single soul will find out about your secrets. Any of them. You can trust my lips to be sealed."

He starts to walk again, past All Might, the number one hero, his former idol. A few paces away, he stops and looks back, "Even if I did say something, who would they trust? A quirkless nothing or the unstoppable hero? And maybe that's what's wrong."

* * *

Two months after the sludge villain is put behind bars, the police department receive word of a possible vigilante. The term is used cautiously, as there was no reported quirk usage. The vigilante wore a bodysuit similar to the fictional superheroes of old. It was a plain forest green overlapped with varying utility belts and a black hoodie worn over it. According to the apprehended villain, she used a number of support items, but when the police ran the descriptions, they didn't fit anything authorized by any support companies.

After another month and 15 different apprehended villains telling the interrogator about the masked girl in green, the local police open an official case on the vigilante. She had already given them something to call her: Nexus.


	2. Chapter 2

Izuku was the first quirkless student at UA, ever. There had never been any, not even in Support, Business, or General. Standing in front of the massive door to Class 1-H wasn't just intimidating, it was downright frightening. He felt almost paralyzed yet students from other classes bustled in the hall around him. He couldn't dawdle any longer without bringing attention to himself. Taking a deep breath, he walked in.

The interior of the classroom was shockingly normal. A second glance at the door figured its size was intended for those with mutation-type quirks, students and teachers alike. A few students were already milling about, sitting in desks or chatting in small groups. Izuku ducked his head and claimed a seat near the window.

After a few furtive glances around, Izuku pulled out one of his idea notebooks. Every design that he had already made was torn out so that if the notebook was found in connection to him, there would be no link from Midoriya Izuku to Nexus. Thinking back to his last villain encounter and subsequent escape from custody, Izuku was determined to design a long distance weapon that would work with his fighting style. He had no way to deal with villains capable of flight or other quirks that put them in the air. Going down this train of thought, Izuku quickly found himself in what his mother referred to as 'drafting mode'. One hand brought up to his chin as he muttered softly and the other to the notebook, recording the more important bits.

Izuku was just pondering if he could get away with something similar to the underground hero Eraserhead's capture weapon when someone sat heavily down in the desk in front of him. He looked up just as they slammed their hands on his desk. He couldn't even get a word out before the strange girl flipped his notebook around and studied the page he was on.

Quickly, he grabbed it and slammed it shut, "Can I help you?"

She met his gaze and her eyes were bright yellow with a black cross. They were shining with excitement, "Those designs looked really cool but they should be more flashy!"

"Uh… Thanks?" He clutched his notebook to his chest. Izuku was torn because on one hand, someone besides his mother had complimented his designs. On the other, the idea notebook was something precious and if looked through with a critical enough eye, someone could connect the dots.

She seemed unfazed and stuck out her hand so fast and so far into Izuku's face that he scooted his chair back a good foot in reaction. "Hatsume Mei." She said, "Pleasure."

He looked down at her hand and then back up to her. A moment passed but her hand didn't drop. Inwardly sighing, Izuku took it and gave it one firm shake, "Midoriya Izuku. The pleasure is all mine."

Hatsume opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off as everyone abruptly scrambled to find their seats. At the front of the classroom, Pro Hero Power Loader stood, calming gazing across his class. An old, familiar part of Izuku wanted to squeal and fanboy. As far as he knew, Power Loader was a truly good hero, but that perception could be simply because Izuku had not yet found the time to research the hero. He hoped that getting to know him as Power Loader-sensei would not change that perception.

* * *

Izuku wanted to be invested in class, but English was a language he was already fluent in. So instead, he spent his time gazing out the window. He didn't want to attempt to design with Hatsume sitting directly in front of him, so he gazed. A cluster of students caught his eye and at first he figured it was a second or third year class, already getting into the swing of things. Then a student with an unforgettable shock of ash blonde hair stepped up. It was class 1-A then.

The teacher, who Izuku identified as Eraserhead, signaled to Bakugou who then threw something in his hands with an explosive force. Izuku's skin crawled uncomfortably when he saw the sparks of Bakugou's explosions and he almost turned away. Until another student caught his eye.

His hair was a perfect split of red and white. His face wasn't turned towards the window, but Izuku doubted there was anyone on the planet who had that hair besides Shouto. Izuku hadn't seen him in years. He tried to catch glimpses or mentions of him on the news, but Endeavor kept his lips shut about his family. To many, it was a surprise that he had a wife, let alone four children. He had resigned himself to never seeing Shouto again but there he was, just outside the window. A student at the same school as Izuku.

His entire life, Izuku had been a nerd. A quirkless, bullied nerd. He never wanted class to end because that just meant it was time to get chased. Today, however, the clock could not be any slower and more agonizing. He had to catch Shouto before he left school. To see how he was doing, to talk to him.

His leg bounced underneath his desk and he desperately wished for something to occupy his hands with. Dismissal was just within a few minutes and then Izuku would bolt to find Shouto.

"Okay." Power Loader-sensei said from the front of the class, "Class dismissed, but if Midoriya would stay behind for a second, I would like to talk to him."

Izuku wanted to just leave him. But Power Loader caught his eye and smiled at him as he shoved his notebooks in his bag. He affected his best trademark sunny smile and approached his teacher, who waited until the other students filed out to begin speaking.

"I just wanted to let you know, Midoriya, that the school is aware of your unique situation and will do anything to accommodate it. You're being excused from Physical Education but your time during that period is to be used productively. As a Support student, you will be allowed to use the Development Studio as long as you are supervised by another teacher. There is also a unisex bathroom on each floor and as well as one in Recovery Girl's office. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to let another staff member or I know."

Power Loader put a heavy hand on Izuku's shoulder in which he probably intended to be a comforting or supportive gesture. It just made him jump though. Izuku fought to keep his smile on his face, "Thank you, sensei. I will keep that in mind! Is there anything else?"

He wanted to scream when Power Loader actually put a thoughtful hand to his face for a moment. "Hmm…" He hummed, "Can't think of anything. Have a nice day, Midoriya."

Izuku nodded and walked out of the room only to start up a brisk pace once in the hallways. There were less students around which made it easier to navigate his way to the exit. Just as he took one step outside the main building, he saw a two-toned head duck it's way into a dark car. Just his luck.

Izuku really could not wait to dig up some solid dirt on Endeavor so he could expose him. There were other heroes he had information on, but he had nothing on the Number Two besides his less than stellar attitude and Shouto's verbal account when they were 12. Izuku knew his best bet was the missing Todoroki child that the world seemed to not know about. It really would be easier if he knew the man's name, but, alas, Endeavor kept his children's given names private. He didn't even know what the Todoroki brother looked like, so that didn't help.

With all his digging though, Izuku had found information on Shouto's mother. Using some unsavory methods, he had discovered she had been hospitalized, classified as a "danger to herself and/or others". Yet no matter how hard he digged, there were no updates on her condition since her initial admission yet she had not yet been released. Izuku sent her anonymous flowers from time to time but he had no idea if she ever received them.

In all the blur of studying for the entrance exams - as well as being Nexus - Izuku had not sent Todoroki Rei flowers in a while. He started on his path home, mentally counting out the change in his wallet to see if he had enough money for a bouquet and postage. He was mentally debating the merits of two different types of flowers when he ran head on into something very solid.

Izuku wasn't 12 anymore, so he didn't fall down on his ass. He did stumble back though and quickly bowed, firing off an apology for being so airheaded.

"It's no problem, man." the person said and when Izuku straightened, he was greeted by a very large amount of bright red hair.

He was only distracted for a moment until the redhead started talking again, "Hey, you're a UA student, right?"

"Ah! Yes!" Izuku replied, noting his uniform to be the same.

The redhead snorted, "No need to be so stiff, dude. We're all good here. I'm Kirishima Eijirou, first year Heroics student, class 1-A. You?"

1-A meant the same class as Bakugou and Shouto. "Midoriya Izuku. I'm in Support, 1-H." Izuku said.

Kirishima seemed to light up, "Oh that's really cool! There's been a rumor going around that there was a quirkless kid admitted this year and apparently they're in the Support department but no one will confirm anything."

He froze for a moment before forcing himself to relax, "Oh really? Maybe they're in my class?"

"Maybe!" Kirishima said, smiling, "They gotta be so cool then. It's manly as hell to be quirkless and still go for a field with heroes. I'd think I'd quit if I was them, but that just proves how brave they must be!"

Izuku searched Kirishima's eyes for anything, but only found unbridled admiration and honesty. He opened his mouth to say something when Kirishima's phone buzzed loudly. He smiled sheepishly as he answered the call, speaking in hushed tones to the person on the other line. The call didn't even last for a minute before Kirishima was looking at him with an apology on his lips, "Hey, sorry, I gotta go. But it was nice meeting you, Midoriya!"

Kirishima waved as he jogged in the other direction. Izuku allowed himself a small wave back.

* * *

Izuku tried to catch Shouto everyday at school, but he's barely managed a glimpse of him around the hallways. He tried searching for him in the cafeteria, but he wasn't there. He also seemed to just disappear the moment students were dismissed for the day.

Ever since that first day, Hatsume stuck to his side like glue. He really didn't mind it. She was a brilliant inventor and Izuku often tried to sneak in ways to discuss ideas for his vigilante weapons. She was an odd combination of completely oblivious and incredibly observant. Izuku had not once yet participated in their English class, yet she managed to figure out he was fluent. On the other hand, she constantly zipped around at high speeds, not fully realizing that Izuku had issues with breathing due to his binder. She just didn't seem to connect that Izuku not participating in PE meant that he was unable to in some way.

Izuku and Hatsume often sat with each other at lunch, but they hadn't quite settled on a table yet. They rotated between a few but more often than not, they gave up their seats for a larger group. By the end of the first week, there was only one lunch table with more than one open seat. In fact, all the seats but one were empty.

As they approached the table, the other occupant seemed to be irritated and Izuku desperately wished that they weren't irritated at them, but at something else entirely. He just wanted to sit down and have lunch without going through five different tables. Hatsume and him sat across from each other on the other side of the table, giving the other person a wide berth.

Hatsume promptly jumped in to telling him all about the new ideas she had and Izuku had to remind her several times that she actually needed to eat. He kept stealing glances at the other person, somewhat waiting for them to kick the duo out. But they seemed content to just glare at the table while they ate their food.

In the middle of a rant about material science, Izuku looked over and they made eye contact. The other person seemed to bristle but Izuku just raised a hand and waved, a small smile on his face. Hatsume looked between the two and slammed her hands on the table (she seems to make a habit of that), "Are we finally including Mister Loner here?"

The stranger quirked an eyebrow but didn't say anything. Hatsume stuck out her hand, right in his face, "I'm Hatsume Mei, and my buddy is Midoriya Izuku. We're in the Support Department, class 1-H. You are?"

He looked at Hatsume like she had grown a second head. Izuku knew that he was probably just stunned by how forward she can be, so he decided to butt in.

"Hatsume, don't go scaring strangers." He told her, swiping at her still outstretched hand, "He doesn't have to talk to us if he doesn't want to. I would say he could also make us move but I'm not sure there's another table to move to."

The boy turned to Izuku and seemed to size him up. They just looked at one another for a moment before the boy sighed, possibly having found what he was looking for, "Shinsou Hitoshi."

Hatsume lit up and scooted over the seats to sit across from Shinsou. Izuku didn't miss the fact that she left her half-eaten food behind and slid over at well, setting her tray in front of her. Shinsou looked even more confused at this development, "Why exactly are you talking to me?"

Izuku looked at Hatsume for an answer, just as she was doing the same to him. She shrugged so it was left to him, "There are no lunch tables left and… um… Always make allies where you can?"

Shinsou raised an eyebrow again but didn't say anything else. However, Izuku got him to talk a few times before the lunch break was over. He wouldn't mention this to anyone, but he was very proud of that fact.

* * *

It was Monday when Izuku finally got his chance. He had arrived to school early, as usual, and was standing in the hallway, a little ways away from the door to Class 1-A. It wasn't even to see if he could talk to Shouto. He actually was there hoping to catch Kirishima, seeing if he could talk to him again. The redhead seemed bubbly in an entirely different manner than Hatsume. Hatsume's brain worked even faster than her mouth and most of the things she said were at least preceded by some thought. Thinking before you speak isn't a bad trait to have, far from it, but it put Izuku just a little on edge. He wanted to trust her, but the fact that she was constantly brainstorming weapons was something akin to a red flag. Perhaps more of a yellow one. Kirishima, from what Izuku gleaned from their short encounter, seemed the brutally honest type, in a friendly way.

Which is what led him standing a few feet from the door to Class 1-A before classes started. He hadn't run into Bakugou yet, which was a good thing. He was getting more and more nervous by the second though, as the chances of that encounter increased. He was just turning around to head to his own classroom when a red and white head turned into the hallway.

He tried to keep his pace slow and even when he walked up to the other boy, no need to frighten him. It has been three years after all.

"Hey, Shouto! What's up?"


	3. Chapter 3

Endeavor had just returned from a mission the night previous. Shouto guessed it must have not gone well based on their training that night. When he woke up at 4:30 the next morning, he took the opportunity to get a head start to school. He was not eager to have morning training before class. He meandered along his usual route, arriving early to things wasn't quite his style. He knew the only classmate of his that would be at school that early was Iida Tenya. He only knew Iida's name because of his family legacy, the rest of his classmate's names were blanks.

His wandering paid off, at least. He was only about 20 minutes early. When he turned down the hallway, there was another student hanging around. Shouto didn't recognize him, but that didn't entirely rule out the possibility of being a classmate. The boy was just leaving before he caught sight of Shouto. His head turned so quickly, he felt his own neck hurt. He moved towards Shouto, a smile on his face and a hand waving.

"Hey, Shouto! How are you?"

He has long since mastered the art of keeping a blank face, but he couldn't quite keep his eyebrows from scrunching up a little. There was no one outside his family who called him Shouto. He doubted that most of his classmates even knew his given name. Yet here was this stranger, calling him Shouto with such a happy look on his face.

"Do I know you?"

The other student's smile fell for only a moment before returning, "Oh, well, you see, I'm a support student? And well, I want to get to know all the first years? For like, networking purposes. Yeah."

Shouto nodded minutely, still confused.

"Well, I should get going back to my class!" So not a classmate then, "See you around, Todoroki!"

Just as quickly as he had arrived, the other student left, jogging down the corridor. Shouto watched him until he turned the corner, to the other classrooms.

The networking excuse didn't really seem plausible. The student seemed too familiar with him. The only other idea was that the two had met before, but that couldn't be true. The only time Shouto ever left the Todoroki compound without his father was when he went to the hospital for his eye. He had at-home tutors and physicians. His entire childhood was simply a blur, the same monotonous routine every day. Wake up, train, eat, train, study, train, eat, study, sleep. Only really one memory stood out in particular, blank eyes and a screaming kettle.

He was sure he would remember meeting someone new, especially if that person was his age. If anyone noticed that he was distracted that day, no one said anything.

* * *

Izuku jogged down the hallway and back to 1-H. A few students were already at their desks or standing around in groups, but Hatsume wasn't there yet. This left him free to ponder what just happened.

It certainly was Shouto ( _or Todoroki_ , he guesses) that he just saw. Besides the fact that Todoroki has the most unique face and hair in the world, he also responded when Izuku called him Shouto. So either their encounter wasn't as important to Todoroki as it was to Izuku or Todoroki forgot for another reason. He would bet money on the latter. Izuku's own memories could be skewed, but their encounter 3 years ago seemed like the first time Todoroki had ever opened up to anyone. That's usually a memorable occurrence.

His psychology research had always been a bit slow. Books available to the public (and within his budget) were either introductory books or complex tomes written entirely in jargon. Thus, Izuku turned to his most trusted source: Wikipedia.

He found his answer on only the second article. Amnesia due to trauma. A lot of the article was written in, again, technical jargon, but he got the gist of it. You can't dwell on your traumatic experiences if you can't remember them.

Being at school was suddenly very difficult as all Izuku could think about was decking Endeavor in his stupid, flaming face. He could barely sit still during class, hands clenching and knee bouncing. If anyone noticed he was specifically focused on heat resistance materials during workshop, no one said anything.

* * *

Izuku had never been more relieved to start vigilante work. He had a stakeout planned for tonight and was really hoping to punch someone. While Izuku was out most nights, that was usually in a simple disguise for information gathering purposes. Nexus's appearances were carefully planned. He always knew what he was up against and prepared accordingly. He didn't have a quirk to help him out in tight situations, so he needed to use his brain as much as he could.

It was barely 5 pm when he left his apartment, his backpack slung over his shoulder. All the gear he would need for tonight was there (Suit, hand tape, gadgets to combat quirks, miscellaneous objects for fighting and escaping, and his small first aid kit) and he had left a note for his mom.

 _Out at the library and maybe the workshop, be back late. - Izuku_

Even before the birth of Nexus, Izuku spent many late nights out. Midoriya Inko had long since stopped staying up for her son to return home.

Yamasaki was packed at 5 pm. He pushed through the throng of homegoing workers, his destination in mind. He threaded into the alleys, into the red-light district where he found somewhere to get changed and stash his bag.

Getting into the suit felt good. Something about the anonymity of it both thrilled and comforted him. It didn't take long for him to find a good vantage point. His target, a small bar, was next to an alley where Izuku perched on a fire escape, about 2 stories up.

Recently, a man with a fabric manipulation quirk had been preying on women in the area. Usually, bartenders and waitresses who step out into back alleys for a quick break. The man's name was Tomine. Izuku had been going around the neighborhood in different disguises to get information on him. A few women had even made police reports, but that rarely means much in areas like this. But he had, on good info, that he would be at this bar on this night.

It was several long hours before anything happened. First, the target stepped into the alley and took his own seat obscured by a dumpster. He was cocky enough (or dumb enough) that he didn't even bother to check his surroundings. Didn't even bother to look up. About 15 minutes later, the employees only door swung open. A tall woman in an apron walked out, cigarette already dangling from her lips.

Izuku shifted, ready to jump down. A single pebble fell from the rooftop above him and clanged against the metal fire escape. Tomine looked up. Tomine ran.

"Shit!" Izuku cursed under his breath, hopping the railing and running after him. He trailed a good distance behind his target, sticking to the shadows and making as little noise as possible. Hopefully Tomine would think he had lost his pursuer. The two weaved through alleys, Tomine always throwing glances over his shoulder. As the chase continued, his glaces became fewer and farther between. Tomine slowed to a walk and then a halt, leaning up against a wall and breathing heavily.

Izuku waited two beats before darting out from the shadows and tackling Tomine to the ground. Just as Tomine hit the concrete, Izuku heard another person land behind him. Tomine struggled underneath him, but couldn't break out of Izuku's hold. Keeping his ears trained on whoever was behind him, Izuku reached into one of his pouches and grabbed the small taser there. One press to Tomine's neck and he was out like a light. Izuku zip tied his hands together for good measure.

The person behind him still hadn't moved. Izuku rose to his feet slowly. Just as he straightened his back, there was a crunch of gravel. A single step forward.

The air whistled with how fast Izuku popped out his staff and whirled it around. The person didn't even flinch when the staff appeared right below their chin. They simply raised an eyebrow.

"Vigilantism is illegal you know." Pro Hero Eraserhead said to him.

They stood like that for a moment. Eraserhead staring down at Izuku and Izuku staring up at Eraserhead. Plans ran through Izuku's head like lightning. Eraserhead's quirk wouldn't work against him, but he had years more experience in a fight. One on one battle was Eraserhead's specialty. He didn't have a lot of his support equipment on him and he doubted he would be allowed close enough to use the small taser again.

Izuku's mind spun and spun until Eraserhead moved his arm minutely towards the capture weapon sitting on his neck. In half reflex and half realization, he jabbed his staff right into Eraserhead's throat before dashing forward, past the hero and back into the maze of alleys.

The slap of footfalls behind him came quicker than expected. Izuku turned corners and hopped fences, but his pursuer was relentless. He stumbled after landing wrong on a jump and something rushed past his ear. Eraserhead's capture weapon snagged his arm and Izuku fell. He twisted so that his back landed against the ground and Eraserhead was on him in a second, trying to get Izuku's hands behind his back. Elbows and hands flew everywhere during the struggle and he knew that these would definitely bruise.

When Eraserhead got a forearm against his throat and one hand on his arm, Izuku maneuvered something out of his glove and pressed it against the flesh of Eraserhead's wrist. One click and Eraserhead stiffened as electricity coursed through his body. To his credit, he didn't pass out, but he was dazed and disoriented just long enough for Izuku to make a quick exit.

He couldn't believe that actually worked.

Nexus had actually just escaped Pro Hero Eraserhead.

* * *

Shouta sighed as the little vigilante disappeared around the corner. He knew he wouldn't be able to catch up to her, not when his limbs were being uncooperative. He waited until he stopped twitching to make his way back towards the original criminal. The man was still knocked out cold against the concrete. He was barely even injured except for the bright red mark where the girl had stuck her taser.

Vigilantes weren't anything new or special. They weren't even too big of an issue most of the time. Either their own lives got in the way and the vigilante's activity decreased into nothing or the extremely thankless work made them bored and the vigilante just stopped. Vigilante's were never active for more than a few months before stopping. Or getting caught.

Shouta brought the criminal to the local police station.

The police officer behind the desk saw the unconscious criminal and snorted, "Did you have to be so hard on him, Eraser?"

"That wasn't me." Shouta said simply, "Just a little vigilante, nothing to be concerned about."

To his shock, the police officer groaned, "Were they wearing a green body suit?"

"Yes."

The officer tipped his head back and pinched his eyebrows, "That's Nexus. Well, that's what she calls herself. She's been active across several different areas for like, 8 months now. No reported quirk usage, just a shitton of homemade weapons."

Now that was interesting. A puzzle, a challenge, "Have you discerned any pattern to her movements?"

The officer looked at Shouta, "Not really, why?"

"It's just interesting, that's all." Shouta hummed.

Not only was it interesting, but it was also potentially frightening. Judging from her stature, she was only a teenager. A teenager who has good enough fighting skills to get criminals without a quirk and who is smart enough to make weapons by herself? Either she was very impressive or someone was out there, training and supplying weapons to children.

Shouta got back to his apartment that night with copies of the files on Nexus as well as the other branches who had reports of her. He was determined to figure out who she was. What he would do after that? He didn't know yet. If she was truly doing that stuff for herself, it would be a waste to arrest her.


End file.
